Researchers exploring the depths of the northern Gulf of Mexico have discovered a scary-looking, deep-sea fish that looks like the stuff of nightmares.
Tracey Sutton, an oceanography researcher at Nova Southeastern University's Halmos College of Natural Sciences, discovered the new species of Ceratioid anglerfish in the northern Gulf at depths of 1,000 to 1,500 meters, according to Phys.org. He found three female specimens ranging in size from 30-95 mm in length.
The new fish, as described by CNN, looks like a hunchbacked, rotting old shoe with spikes, a scraggly mustache and a big mouth with bad teeth.
The only thing "normal" about this species is the long, angular fishing pole that's growing out of his head – a feature that is common among all species of ceratioid anglerfish, which is used to lure prey.
"This fish dangles the appendage until an unsuspecting fish swims up thinking they found a meal, only to quickly learn that they are, in fact, a meal themselves," according to the news release posted on the Nova Southeastern University website.
Sutton notes that due to the vastness and sheer depth of the ocean, there's always a chance to see something new on each research trip.
"As a researcher, the one thing I know is that there's so much more we can learn about our oceans," he said. "Every time we go out on a deep-sea research excursion there's a good chance we'll see something we've never seen before – the life at these depths is really amazing."
He followed up with noting that every new discovery is a testament to how little we know about underwater species.
"Finding this new species reinforces the notion that our inventory of life in the vast ocean interior is far from complete," Sutton said. "Every research trip is an adventure and another opportunity to learn about our planet and the varied creatures who call it home."
